The Cursed One

[chapter 02]

Chapter Two: Stark

Claire sighed softly as she held onto her folder in front of the large black door. She heard shuffling around on the inside before the door opened. The shorter girl looked up at the man that had answered the door. He had dark brown hair and hazel colored eyes. Tall, yes. Maybe a few inches taller than her. He wore a nice suit but sneakers with the suit which threw off the whole fancy idea.

Tony Stark

Claire stood there and her cheeks flushed pink as she looked at him. The man she had looked up to ever since she won her first science fair for building a robot out of scrap metal. She was excellent with her work. She looked at him and held out her folder with all her information inside. Her shyness was getting the best of her.

She felt the folder slowly and gently be taken from her hands. Anthony looked at the girl, up and down, taking in every feature about her. The way her cheeks had a pink tint to them and her cobalt blue eyes that shimmered just slightly. She was short and her light pink sweater draped over her hips. She wore black tights and a black skirt to go with the pink sweater. He studied her face, noticing how well her glasses fit onto her little nose. Practically screaming that glasses go there. Her blonde hair barely touched her shoulders as well.

Cute

That was the first word that popped into Tony's head. Short and cute. He nodded for her to follow him into his office. He sat down at his desk and glanced up at the girl, seeing that she didn't sit down. She didn't know what to do. Tony cleared his throat before speaking up to calm the girl down.

"Please... have a seat," he said gently which made the girl sit down in the chair in front of him, giving him a nice view of her. He looked down at her folder before he opened it. He read over her information and flipped through everything.

The two jumped slightly when there was a knock on the door. Anthony looked up and sighed softly before speaking and telling whoever it was to come in. The door opened and Claire glanced back to see who it was. She froze a little seeing who it was.

Natasha

Claire was at a loss of words as the redhead looked at her. Those piercing eyes practically digging into her soul. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat before setting her hands in her lap. She looked at Tony as he squeezed a stress ball in his hand as he read over her information.

"Can I help you, Nat?" Anthony asked gently as he closed the folder and set it down on the desk. He turned his seat slightly, resting his elbow on the table. He looked at the redhead and expected her to yell at him for getting coffee ever where in the kitchen, then again she wasn't Pepper so that wouldn't happen.

"Just came to drop by and see how everything was going," she said gently as she leaned against Claire's chair slightly, making the blonde's stomach churn with worry. Natasha glanced down at Claire before looking at Tony, "you know... I met Claire yesterday. I think she'd be a great helper but then again... she could come work for SHIELD."

"Nat... you're scaring the poor girl. Clearly, she wants to work for me so just let her do what she wants," Tony said as he stood up and walked over to the window, looking out on New York. It was a beautiful view of the city that was for sure. He turned slightly and looked at Claire and Natasha.

"She would fit right in at SHIELD. Fury could use some extra help. They need someone in New Mexico with Clint while I'm away," the redhead said softly which made Claire perk her head up slightly. New Mexico? Why did they need her out there? Her thoughts were soon cut off when Tony placed his hand on her shoulder, giving it a small squeeze.

"Why can't Fury send me?" Tony asked as he looked at the redhead. Natasha raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms, looking at the billionaire. He knew what she was about to say. He knew exactly what words would come out of her mouth.

"You're not technically part of the team. They approved the suit... just not you, Tony. You don't work well with others," Natasha said simply, shrugging her shoulders as she looked at him.

"Two days. For Claire's first job," Anthony caved in as he looked at Natasha. Claire looked up at them and swallowed a little. What was so important about New Mexico? What was there? Why was it so important for her to go there and spend two days there when she could be doing other things.

"Perfect. She can leave tomorrow and help Selvig," Natasha said simply before she turned and left the room, leaving the two sitting there in silence. Claire looked at Anthony and swallowed a little. Well this was joyful.

After her meeting with Tony, Claire headed to a Japanese cafe. She sat down and thanked the waiter for the bowl of noodles with chicken. She sighed and picked up her chop sticks, taking a bite of her food. She set down the sticks and sighed softly.

"I didn't picture you as a noodle girl?" A voice said which made Claire turn her head to see Anthony. He took off his sunglasses and shoved them into his pocket before he walked over to her. He had changed into an average t-shirt and grey sweatpants with sneakers.

Claire's cheeks flushed pink and she swallowed her food. Tony walked over and sat down beside her. She seemed so short compared to him. The blonde sighed and she looked down, setting her hands into her lap.

"I'm sorry about what happened in there. Nat can be a little demanding," he said softly before looking at her. He moved her bowl closer to her so she could finish her food, "don't let it get cold."

"I'm not very hungry," Claire said softly as she looked down at her lap. Anthony sighed and he leaned back against the chair. He crossed his arms and looked around the small little cafe before ordering himself some tea. He looked at Claire and sighed.

"So... do you still want to go to New Mexico? It's a perfect opportunity," Stark said gently as he sipped at his tea. He looked at Claire and sighed softly.

"I'm considering it," she said, barely above a whisper. She sighed and stood up, grabbing her bag. Tony sighed and he watched her leave the shop, listening to the soft dinging noise the bell made when the door had been opened. He set down his cup and rubbed a hand down his face. He never felt like this. The girl was so... Perfect in a way. Yet he still had a heart for Pepper. Claire was much different than Pep though. Claire was defiantly shorter than Pepper.

Claire sighed in relief as she finally got out of the shop. She hated being close to people. She was afraid she would get attached and then something bad would happen. She missed her sister terribly and she hated the heartache that her abilities caused when out of control. She didn't know what she wanted to do. Claire rushed back to her apartment and slammed her door shut.

She was scared of herself and the things she could do.